It's official: Oregon State's James Rodgers out for the year with knee injury

CORVALLIS – Worst-case scenario became reality for the Oregon State football team Monday afternoon when it was announced that James Rodgers, the Beavers star senior flanker, had been lost for the season due to injury.

Rodgers, one half of OSU's superstar duo, was injured in Saturday's 29-27 win at Arizona with 5:07 to play in the first half. Rodgers caught a 56-yard touchdown pass from Ryan Katz – the touchdown was later negated by a penalty – but was taken down by Wildcat safety Adam Hall, severely twisting his left knee.

When Rodgers could not stand up trainers rushed to the field, and carried him off. He remained on crutches, with his knee wrapped, for the rest of the game. Afterward, Rodgers told The Oregonian "(Hall) grabbed me by the collar, on my shoulder pads and I knew immediately something was wrong with the side of my leg. I didn't feel it snap, and I didn't hear nothing, I just knew it was very tight. When I couldn't get up and walk, that's when I knew it was bad."

Rodgers had an MRI on Sunday, but details of his injury were not available to the media. In a statement released by Oregon State, coach Mike Riley said, "We are tremendously disappointed with the news that one of our team captains and leaders is sidelined for the rest of the season. I know James will stay very involved with the team during his rehabilitation process and we look forward to his return as soon as possible."

Oregon State will submit paperwork to the Pacific-10 in January – teams must wait until the season is over – to get Rodgers a medical hardship, which would allow him to return next season and finish his career in Corvallis with his younger brother, Jacquizz. The Pac-10 generally rules on such requests in March.

According to NCAA rules, student-athletes qualify for a hardship waiver if "the injury or illness occurs when the student-athlete has not participated in more than three contests or dates of competition (whichever is applicable to that sport) or 30 percent (whichever number is greater) of the institution's scheduled or completed contests ..." In OSU's case that means 3.6 games – which is rounded to four, according to the NCAA – and because Rodgers did not play against Arizona State due to a head injury, he has only appeared in four games.

Since he has never redshirted, Rodgers should meet all the requirements for a hardship waiver. However, he is on track to graduate after this term, so he would have to take additional undergraduate courses or enroll in graduate school to remain eligible.

Rodgers was not available for comment but on Monday morning he tweeted, "I want to thank everyone for their thoughts and prayers for me ... I really appreciate each and every one of them." Late Sunday night Rodgers quoted Martin Luther King, Jr., on his Twitter account saying, "The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy."

The OSU career leader in all-purpose yards (5,784), Rodgers has become one of the best return men in college football, and in four games averaged 176.8 all-purpose yards per game.

After Oregon State's 31-28 win over Arizona State on Oct. 2 which Rodgers sat out with a concussion – the result of a nasty helmet-to-helmet hit he suffered in the Boise State game – Mike Riley was asked if the absence of Rodgers gave other receivers an opportunity to grow. Riley laughed and said he was proud of how many other players stepped up but made clear that, "I don't want to play without James very often."